You may have a life insurance policy protecting your family against any specified event. This insurance covers the risk of life and pays out specified sums to your family in the unfortunate case of your death.
Similarly you can also protect your tangible assets against damages and accidents with special insurance contracts known as general insurance. All non-life insurance policies, including motor, health, home and commercial insurance, are called general insurance.
General insurance includes protection against fire, theft and burglary of your assets such as home, office or car. General insurance also covers health and travel. You can insure anything that you value with general insurance products. This would provide financial protection from a fire, storm flood, earthquake, accidents, theft and burglary among other things.
Life insurance policies usually have a tenure lasting a lifetime. On the other hand, general insurances are available for a certain tenure after which they have to be renewed.
Both private and public sector companies offer general insurance products. These general insurance companies are regulated by the Insurance Regulatory and development Authority of India (IRDAI). According to IRDAI, there are 34 insurance agencies that offer non-life insurance policies. All 34 agencies offer around 800 products for general insurance.
The government is currently planning to merge all state-owned insurers into one agency for the general insurance sector. This would mean that the state will have a single agency offering non-life insurances, much like the Life Insurance Company, (LIC), for the life insurance policies.
Most motor insurances are cashless and make it convenient for the insured. It may also include personal accident cover for the driver and other members present in the vehicle at the time of the accident. Some agencies also offer roadside assistance and towing facilities.
Motor Insurances can be of three categories:
A health insurance covers the medical and surgical expenses for the insured person. Unlike the life insurance, which is an assurance covering the risk of life, a health insurance pays for your medical and surgical bills. The cover in the health insurance is up to the amount specified at the time of purchase of the insurance. It could be cashless where you need not pay anything to the hospital and the insurance agency settles the bill with the hospital or clinic. Alternatively, you can pay the hospital and claim the funds from the insurance agency later.
You can opt for a policy for your own self or even opt for a ,plan that covers your family members. You can go for a comprehensive policy that offers add-ons such as room rent waiver, maternity cover, critical illness cover, hospital cash, personal accident rider. A health insurance policy is generally valid for a year and has to be renewed at the end of the year. You can change your policy at the end of the year if you are not happy with the existing one.
Many insurance agencies, both private and public are now offering policies customised for specific diseases and ailments such as diabetes and cancer. There are several kinds of health insurances such as individual policies, family policies, senior citizen policies, critical illness plans, maternity health insurance, preventive healthcare and personal accident covers.
Additionally, those who opt for health insurance also enjoy tax benefits. Premium paid towards health insurance is eligible for tax deductions under section 80 D of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
A travel insurance protects you against any unexpected travel accidents, takes care of your medical expenditures in case of accidents, takes care of your baggage loss or delayed arrival of luggage at the airport. This insurance also protects you against the loss of your passport and other documents. Losses incurred owing to delay in flights are also covered.
The travel insurance is an essential tool for those who travel frequently. It provides cover against any last minute detour of your trip or delay in traveling from one place to another. The policy will take care of transportation in the same city arising due to the delay, expenses for hotel accommodation, switching flights due to cancellations and curtailments.
Travel policies also offer cover for legal liabilities and other legal expenses, apart from the medical and accommodation. You can also find insurers that cover home burglary while you are away.
An insurance policy is especially important if you are travelling abroad. The policy will take care of your medical emergencies such as ambulance charges, hospitalisation etc and you do not have to worry about currency exchanges. In some cases, the policy also compensates you for losses and interruptions if you cancel your trip or prepone your return.
There are various types of travel insurance such as individual travel insurance, family or group insurance, student insurance, senior citizen insurance, medical travel insurance, international travel insurance, domestic travel insurance etc.
The basic home insurance policy protects the structure and contents of your home. It provides coverage against any financial liabilities arising from the damage/loss of your home and/or its contents due to natural or man-made reasons. In such cases, the insurance agency will issue regular home insurance pay outs with which you can rehabilitate your family and start repairing your house.
Home insurances also offer additional covers against burglary and theft or earthquake. While most home insurance policies are annual contracts, some also provide a tenure of five years. There are three kinds of covers that a home insurance policy offers.
Fire and Peril: Any damage to your house or property due to a fire, explosion, aircraft damage, lightning, earthquake, missile testing operations, will be compensated by the insurance agency.
Natural calamities: The insurance agency will take care of any damages to your house and property caused by flood, hurricane, storm, landslide and rockslide and cyclone among other calamities.
Manmade calamities: The insurance agency protects your house and property against damages dues to a riot or a strike. It will also cover your damages from theft or burglary.
Marine insurance not only covers the ship but also the cargo inside. There are three types of marine insurances—cargo insurance, freight insurance and hull insurance.
According to law, marine insurance is a mandatory requirement for all ship, boat and yacht owners who are using their vessels for commercial or transportation purposes. Marine insurance provides all-round coverage against a variety of risks faced while at sea. Since insurance agencies offer claim survey at any part of the world, you can claim your insurance from anywhere.
A marine insurance provides protection to your finances and assets while the vessel is at sea transporting cargo or personnel across. However, this does not include coverage for any routine wear and tear or ordinary leakage in the vessel. The insurance also doesn’t protect the vessel owner against damages caused due to delay in transportation.
Similarly any damage caused wilfully or intentionally by the owner is also not covered. Some insurance agencies offer coverage of damage caused due to civil commotion, strikes, war, riot, etc. The insurance, however, doesn’t cover any damage or loss occurring due to bankruptcy or financial default of the owner of the transport vessel.
There are various kinds of commercial insurance. For instance, property insurance a common commercial insurance where the insurance agency covers damages to the commercial properties of the insured. These damages could be caused due to a fire or any other hazard.
Similar commercial insurance is available to shopkeepers as well. It covers damages to the shop building, premises, theft of items, bicycles and signboards. This policy also provides cover to the person if there is any injury due to housebreaking or theft.
Another common commercial insurance is the liability insurance which provides cover against legal liabilities. This is available to large enterprises that want to offset business liability risks in diverse locations globally.
Yet another example of a commercial insurance is aviation liability in which the insurance company covers for all types of aircraft against disappearance or , loss. It is applicable for small aircrafts as well as private jets. The insurer also covers damages to equipment, tools or supplies of the company, apart from dangers arising out of war and other acts of aggressions. In most of these policies, crew members are also covered.
The bankers’ indemnity insurance policy is also a kind of commercial policy in which all branches of a particular bank in the country are covered. The insurance provides cover against loss of cash or securities in any of the banks, in transit, forgery, dishonesty, hypothecated goods, registered postal losses and appraisers, among others.
Other examples of commercial insurance are engineering insurance, energy insurance, employee benefit insurance, international insurance and automobile insurance.
Private sector agencies:
But don’t worry, we will tell you all about the claim process for the most common types of general insurance.
If you own a vehicle and have been in an accident, do not panic if you have an insurance. The first step is to inform the insurance agency of the accident. You can do so by calling the toll-free assistance number. The next step is to file an FIR about the accident. Do not move your vehicle from the accident spot and take lots of pictures of any damages and injuries.
The insurance agency will send a surveyor to check the damages to the vehicle. The surveyor will take the vehicle to one of the network garages approved by the insurance agency, if you have chosen for a cashless service. You need to submit the required documents to the surveyor. The insurance company will confirm the liability and settle your bills with the garage directly. If you have opted for a reimbursement scheme, after the surveyor checks the damages, you can take it to the nearest garage and start repair work. Keep the bills for all repair works. You have to pay for the repair charges and then submit the bills with a claim form to the surveyor/company for settlement.
In case of preauthorisation and cashless claims, you can fill out the preauthorisation form available at the hospital's insurance or TPA Desk. You can email or fax this form to your insurance agency. The claim management team will approve your claim and send letter, also via email to authorise the policy. The claim management team will send an inquiry to the hospital before approving authorisation. If the team rejects the authorisation, proceed with the treatment and claim for reimbursement later.
In case of a life insurance, the insurance company pays a certain sum to the family or the nominee of the policyholder upon the death of the policyholder. If the term of the policy expires and the policyholder is alive, he or she will receive a specific sum is paid to the policyholder.
In life insurance there are both survival and death benefits to the policyholder or nominee. On the other hand, a health insurance provides funds for treatment or surgery after an illness or an accident.
In case of a life insurance, the premium can be paid either in lump sum or in periodic intervals. But in case of health insurance, the premium is paid in lump sum for the whole term. Moreover, life insurance is a long-term policy and health insurance is more short-term (usually for three to five years).
In case of life insurance a fixed amount is paid to the nominee or the policyholder at the time of the death of the insured or upon maturity of the policy. But in health insurance, there is no money that is paid if the policy expires.
While travelling within the country or abroad, you are prone risks such as accidents, thefts, loss of tickets and loss of luggage. We are also at a risk of losing our baggage, important documents or even a cancellation of your trip for various reasons. A travel insurance can provide a safety net against these risks. In fact if there is a delay in flight—which so very often happens—and you are forced to travel within the city and find accommodation, it is reassuring to be insured against these extra expenses.
A travel insurance also covers in-patient treatment in a local hospital, out-patient treatment, provided if it is critical, medical aid for broken limbs or injuries if prescribed by physician as well as pathological and diagnostic tests like X-ray, diagnostic tests, etc. Dental care and anaesthetic treatment after an accident are also covered. Transportation and emergency medical evacuation, too, are covered.
